More Fun at the DBAP

Season: 61-66; Home Stand: 2-0
Games Left in Season: 17; Home Games: 12
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

The hitters just kept hitting.

Everyone, except Hak-Ju Lee, got a hit. Mikie Mahtook had what may have been his best night of the year with a double and three singles. After twice getting cheated of a home run, once at the DBAP and once in Indianapolis, J.P. Arencibia got his 21st of the year over the Monster. Arencibia is the leading home run hitter in the International League. Taylor Motter got a double, his 36th, and he leads the International League in doubles.

Bradin Hagens, who had accumulated five losses and a no-decision since the All-Star break, was the beneficiary, although he did just fine on his own. He gave up just 1 run in his five innings. Robert Zarate had a much, much better inning than the awful oddity he had in Louisville the night before last (1 hit, 2 walks, 2 hit batsmen, 3 earned runs, 3 Ks). A clean three up, three down.

New guy Parker Markel arrived from Montgomery and pitched a clean 9th. It was the AAA debut of the 24-year old. He has 53 relief innings in 42 games with the Biscuits and a 3.23 ERA.

Outside the game —

• Markel was the only transaction reported yesterday. But with former Bull Jake McGee going on the DL for the Rays, we’d have to guess that there will be some more shuffling soon. One source is reporting that it’s Enny Romero.
• We’ve mentioned Matt Buschmann a lot the last couple of years. Local baseball writer Adam Sobsey did a fine background piece on him in a recent Grantland issue. Buschmann was recently seen at the DBAP coaching first base for the Louisville Bats and then, after a trade, on the mound for the Norfolk Tides. 
• A complete game, 1-hit shutout is a big, big deal. Congrats to former Bull Chris Archer. Stories here and here.

Bulls Explode Against Mud Hens

Season: 60-66; Home Stand: 1-0;
Games Left: 18; Home Games Left: 13
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

As the line score shows, this was an amazing game for the hitters and pitchers. Every Bull got at least one hit: 4 doubles, a triple (Boog Powell), four home runs (two by Richie Shaffer, one by Nick Franklin, one by Taylor Motter), and 11 singles. Cory Brown was the only Bull who didn’t get at least one RBI. An amazing, year’s best, night: 38 total bases, team OPS of 1.404, team wOBA of .577.

Meanwhile, Blake Snell continues to show his stuff. He only gave up one hit (a solo home run) in 5 innings of work.

Outside the game —

• I can’t keep track of all the transactions. The Bulls have had 189 of them this year! That's 1.5 transactions per game! Pretty sure that I haven’t mentioned at least some of these. 
• José Dominguez was designated for assignment (the Rays needed his 40-man slot, Smyly finished his rehab). No word on his status. Note that former Bull Dale Thayer is in the same "DFA Limbo" status. 
• Leonardo Reginatto went back to Montgomery.
• Joey Butler came back to the Bulls from Tampa Bay.
• Edward Teaford went to Hudson Valley on the 15th and came back on the 18th. Hope he enjoyed the trip.
• Enny Romero was called up to Tampa Bay and I think he’s on his way back.
• Matt Andriese was called up (he took the loss in the 13th inning last night).
• Richie Shaffer is back, with his bat, obviously.
• Kirby Yates is back.
• Dylan Floro has gone on the disabled list.
• Meanwhile, I don’t think that I have pointed out that Vince Belnome was signed by the New York Mets and is playing with their AA team, the Binghamton Mets. Doing OK.
• The Biscuits are doing well.

Rainout; Rosterizing

As the Durham Bulls go into today’s double header at 5:30 (or so) up in Columbus, the team will be looking quite a bit different from the team that left town yesterday.

• Alan Dykstra and Eugenio Vélez have been released. When we looked at this year’s hitters the other day, neither of them were standouts. What would apparently be more of a problem, however, is that room needed to be made for a talented youngster on his way up and another reportedly talented guy on his way down. Dykstra is 28 and Vélez is 33. Here’s hoping that both of them catch on elsewhere.
• Nick Franklin is on his way down from the Tampa Bay Rays. He’s been with the Bulls before. He’s got a huge reputation and the Rays traded some valuable stock for him last year. Expect to see him spend time in the middle infield. He has not been doing particularly well with the Rays this year and really hasn’t had much playing time. The Rays just traded for a first baseman and needed room on their roster.
• Boog Powell is a young (22) player on his way up. He’s been assigned from Montgomery. See this profile from “Dr. Miraculous” over in Montgomery. Stats.
• In the bullpen will be Enny Romero, back from Tampa Bay. No telling how he will be used. He spent some time with the Bulls in mid-May when he made 3 starts. He was up to TB and then came back to make 2 relief appearances at the end of May. He made four appearances in relief for the Rays this month.
• Kyle Winkler is the young pitcher who came up from the Biscuits and made three appearances before going back to them a couple of days ago. He’s been traded to the LA Angels.

More

• Robbie Knopf over at Rays Colored Glasses has done a profile on young Richie Shaffer.
• WDBB favorite from 2011 and 2012, Dane De La Rosa, has decided to retire. He was with the Norfolk Tides, but did not make an appearance in any game that we saw this year.
• Oh, yeah, Matt Moore may get the start in the first game this afternoon.

Rays' Memo to Sandberg: Toss Lineup Card in Shredder

From this distance it would seem that the Tampa Bay Rays need to do a few things:

1. Fire their training crew and get some folks in that can keep pitchers healthy;
2. Lease a jet to shuttle guys around from place to place; maybe one of those Russian monster transports so they could put a bullpen inside to warm guys up while moving around;
3. Or both of the above.

Here we go, not necessarily in order:

• Andrew Bellatti, with Rays, got broken and went on the DL
• Preston Guilmet, who pitched for the Rays last night, is coming back
• Matt Andriese, who was scheduled to start in Louisville tonight, may start for the Rays instead, here’s hoping they don’t break him, too
• Enny Romero, who may not have ever made it back into a Bulls uniform will be back with the Rays.
• C.J. Riefenhauser has been called up.
• Rays catcher Bobby Wilson was designated for assignment
• Bulls catcher, Curt Casali, likely to be called up.
• Bulls infielder Alexi Casilla went back on the DL with, I think, a hamstring issue.
• Bulls infielder/DH Vince Belnome came off the DL and was the DH last night.

Commentary on the transactions at various locations. Tampa Tribune, Rays Colored Glasses, The Process Report, Rays Index.

Will there be some backfill for the Bulls? Probably. In time to find a starter for tonight? Who knows?

Here’s best wishes to Curt Casali. He has had limited playing time this year and this may be his chance. Guess that Mayo Acosta will be filling in for a while.

How to Win a Marathon

Season: 35-26; Home Stand: 3-0
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

The finish of this longest game of the year (4:12) is well-covered at the links, including the heroics of infielder Leonardo Reginatto who now has a place in the 2015 Durham Bulls record books as a pitcher.

But how in the world did they get there when they had a 7-3 lead going into the 6th inning? Well, I’d like to blame the Tampa Bay Rays, who told the Bulls not to start Matt Andriese, so they had to go with Jordan Norberto who had never started a game in his professional career, and who was, by WDBB’s measures, the Bulls’ worst reliever. But Norberto got out of his 2+ innings in decent shape. The Rays also took away a reliever, Preston Guilmet, which came into play later on.

But we have to admit that the first big mistake was leaving generally superb reliever Jim Miller in the game with two outs in the 6th. Jared Sandberg was ready to take him out since he was over 50 pitches and C.J. Riefenhauser was ready to go. Sandberg, who seems to be quicker with the hook that Charlie Montoyo, even went out to the mound. But Miller apparently talked Sandberg out of pulling him. Didn’t work. The very next batter hit a home run and the IronPigs were then 4 runs back at 7-3. Riefenhauser came in to finish out the 6th.

Andy Oliver, not the Bulls’ best reliever, but not the worst either, came on in the 8th, struck out a batter, then loaded the bases with three quick walks. The last man standing in the Bulls’ bullpen was closer Ronald Belisario. Yes, it was true that this would be his 12th appearance in the last 21 Bulls’ games, but that’s what closers do, right? This was to be, however, a 5-out save and Belisaro had only attempted that twice before this year: one save and one loss. On the other hand, the Bulls really did not have a choice in the matter. The bullpen was empty.

A run scored on an infield out at first and the next batter flied out. The Bulls got the run back on a Reginatto double in the bottom of the inning, so they went into the 9th with a comfortable 3-run lead. After all, Belisario does lead the IL in saves.

A walk, a single, and a home run (by former Bull Russ Canzler), and the game was tied. The marathon began. Young Brazilian infielder Reginatto kept the Bulls in the game until the IronPigs pitching faded in the bottom of the 12th. Note that the rules of the game meant Reginatto also had to keep on coming to bat, which he did in the 12th. He was hit by a pitch and was on 2nd base when Taylor Motter’s home run brought home Hak-Ju Lee to win the game.

Outside the game —

• As mentioned, Preston Guilmet has been called up. Enny Romero is coming back. Kirby Yates was taken off his rehab status and is coming on to the Bulls roster.

In the wings —

• According to the Tampa Tribune’s Roger Mooney, Matt Moore will have a rehab start with the Durham Bulls on June 18. That would be their first home game after the Bulls get back from their current trip.

The Bulls are now alone in first place in the International League South Division.

One Out of Three

 Wrap, Box

Wrap, Box

Season: 32-26; Trip: 1-2
Wrap, Box, Gwinnett Daily Post

Back at the beginning of the season folks were high on Dylan Floro, but we didn’t quite see why. After four very nice starts in a row, the Bulls winning three of them, maybe we’re starting to understand. He’s very efficient. He throws strikes and mostly lets the fielders do the work. He works very quickly (last night’s game was only a little over 2 hours). Will he do well in the majors? Hard to say. So much attention is paid to velocity these days that control guys like Floro can be overlooked. Maybe.

Meanwhile, J.P. Arencibia continued his improving performance. Beginning to like the guy.

Outside the game —

• The Rays are swapping out Enny Romero for Andrew Bellatti. Not sure when Bellatti will be back since players get more time to get back to the Bulls than they are allowed when going to the Rays.
• Long-time major league reliever Ernesto Frieri has accepted an assignment to Durham. Only 29, he is obviously looking to get back in to the form that saw some terrific seasons in 2010 to 2013. Stats. 

In the wings —

• Reliever Kirby Yates had an inning as a starter down in Florida.
• Outfielder Mikie Mahtook got his second hit as a major leaguer, and his second home run.

Pitching Efficiency

This is a home-grown stat that we like to keep track of. Very simple. How many pitches does it take to get an out?

As mentioned earlier, Dylan Floro is a standout in this category, but most of the Bulls crew seem to be doing well by this measure.

click on chart for larger image

Bulls Back in First; Fresh Fruit

Season: 30-23; Home Stand: 6-1
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

With this win the Bulls are now in a three-way tie for first place with the Charlotte Knights and the Norfolk Tides (they got rained out last night). All three teams have had their ups and downs this year as the chart will show.

Have to say the the Bulls are responding well to the daily shuffling of positions that seems to have become the norm. Last night, for example, Taylor Motter started at shortstop. He has played every position on the field except 1B and catcher this year, but only 4 times at shortstop. Ryan Brett was out in center field for just the second time this season. Mostly he’s been at second base, although he only has 13 games under his belt.

With all the shuffling, the Bulls were left with just two players on the bench last night, catcher Curt Casali and infielder Leonardo Reginatto. Pitcher C.J. Riefenhauser officially came off rehab and warmed up in the later innings, but didn’t come into the game.

In a game like this one, fans pick out moments that speak to them. In my case it was Ryan Brett’s base running in the 4th inning. His hit to center field shows on the books as a double, but if he had not been running hard right out of the box he never would have made it to second base. And then when Eugenio Valez singled to right a few minutes later, Brett was again well-ahead of the throw with a nifty, hand-slapping slide past home plate to tie the game. Very nicely done.

Meanwhile, the 4th was the only really tough time for Knight’s pitching. But it was enough. The Bulls got another run in the inning and mostly kept the Knights off the bases for the rest of the game.

Enny Romero got a 3-inning save in spectacular fashion. After the Knights got the tying run to third base with just one out and Romero simply blew away the next two batters with 97 and 98 mph fastballs.

In the Wings (players who have been with Durham this year) —

• Reliever Bryce Stowell gave up 2 runs on 3 hits in the last inning of a Montgomery Biscuits 4-1 loss to the Jacksonville Suns. Box. Wrap.

Outside the game —

• We don’t really go the the DBAP in search of healthy food. But these guys, out of Durham’s Co-op market, have brought some to us. They are over near the ramp up to the first base side of the stands and doing beautiful presentations of very fresh-looking fruit. Reasonable prices, too, it seems to me.

Standings

Nice to see the Bulls back in first place

click on chart for larger image

One Hit Wonder

Season: 27-23; Home Stand: 3-1
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

This was billed as a pitchers’ duel and, in its way, it was. At least Matt Buschmann showed up for the gunfight. His opponent, the Chiefs' A.J. Cole, decided to commit suicide after the first three innings. I don’t know that I’ve seen a pitcher come so thoroughly unraveled as the Chief’s Cole did in the 4th. After getting a pop-up from J.P.Arencibia to start the inning, he then proceeded to walk the next five, count ‘em, five batters to drive in two runs and leave the bases loaded when he was pulled out at last. And they were not close calls, by the last three BBs the pitches were unreachable by the batters. A ground out by Ryan Brett scored the third run, before the inning ended with another ground out.

And to be clear, the Bulls were not hitting all night. In fact, the team only had 1 hit (by Juniel Querecuto in the 3rd inning) in 23 ABs. That’s a batting average of .043! Throw in the walks and hit batsmen and you get an OPS of .356. Not the worst of the year, but still less that half the league average.

Speaking of hit batsmen, the Bulls' Brett was hit, but Buschmann and Romero combined to hit three Chiefs for a season high.

We are beginning to expect a solid performance from Matt Bushmann, and we got another one last night. His Game Score of 70 is his fourth +50 start in a row and his 8th of the year. He has had only 2 starts with a less than 50 GSc.

Enny Romero is back and showed up in long relief after C.J. Riefenhauser got in his one inning of rehab. Romero had no walks and 4 Ks. And a lot of heat. Several 97 mph fastballs in the mix, but it did take him 50 pitches to get through his 2⅓. Ronald Belisario got his 11th save with a three-pitch, two batter appearance.

Mikie Mahtook’s 3 strikeout, 0 for 4 night just adds to our worries about the young man. He looked just fine in right field, but May has been ugly at the plate. In his last 44 ABs he has had 19 strikeouts and no walks. In fact, on the year he has drawn just 9 walks and only 1 this month. Yet, from the stands, he does not look all that awkward at the plate as hitters in slumps often do. As with much of the rest of this team, hitting coach Dave Myers has some work to do.

Outside the game —

• Everett Teaford has been sent down to Montgomery. The weakest of the Bulls starting crew, we wish him well.
• Ryan Brett officially came off of his rehab assignment. As we saw, he was in the game at 2B last night. Like essentially everyone else, he was hitless last night, but he did get an RBI as he drew one of the 4th inning walks.

Comparing Bulls Teams

Fifty games into the season, how do these Durham Bulls compare to previous teams? By the net Runs Scored measure, only so-so, but much better than the 2012 gang. Considering all the roster turmoil and injuries, things are doing better than might be expected.

click on chart for larger image

Win Streak Ends; Pitching Picture

Season: 26-23; Home Stand: 2-1
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun, Rochester Wrap

We’ve been putting up a lot of stats lately that seem to back up the idea that starting pitching is important. This game was a good example because veteran (31) Everett Teaford never quite got a handle on the game. The 4th inning was particularly painful because he had two outs and none on base before things fell apart. Four doubles, a single, and a walk later he finally got the last out with two runners on base. Four runs had scored. The game was then pretty much out of reach given that the Red Wings starter was cruising. Note: The two runs in the 1st inning were scored after two outs had been recorded.

The Bulls did pull off a couple of double plays yesterday and, as was pointed out on twitter, the combination of Querecuto-Reginatto-Arencibia has a melodic turn. The 4-4-5 beat fits nicely into a song.

Otherwise, all the new guys didn’t do any better than the old guys and the rehabbers. Ryan Brett was back and did get a double and a walk at DH. Rehabbing C.J. Riefenhauser pitched an inning and gave up two hits, but no runs. Richie Shaffer came down from the clouds with a 0 for 3 day. Juniel Querecuto was 1 for 3. About the only hitter who had a good day was J.P. Arencibia who went 3 for 4 with an RBI.

Outside the game —

• The Bulls’ 5-game winning streak came to an end. They get a well-deserved day off today. Hope the weather stays nice.
• We could hope that the roster will stabilize, but there’s too many players on the disabled list here and with the Rays for that to happen. Eventually, you have to think folks are going to get healthy and stay healthy. Until that happens we can expect the constant shifting and changing of this team to continue.
• For example, yesterday it was announced that pitchers  Enny Romero and Preston Guilmet are coming back from the Rays.

Pitching Chart

This is a traditional stat, ERA-Earned Run Average, shown in a non-traditional way — as it changes over time, in this case over the last 15 games. Remember that less is more when it comes to ERA and the drift upwards shown in the team ERA is not a good thing. Today’s 3.60 puts the Bulls 7th in the 14-team International League. The Bulls lost 9 of these 15 games and obviously the pitching was a big piece of it. However, that’s a nice little downward trend in the starting pitcher ERA (not counting yesterday, of course). Overall, the reliever trend is very worrisome, especially as it was trending upwards even as the Bulls were winning. But, remember that it’s mostly relievers who have been spending all that time in the RDU and Tampa airports this month. 

click chart for larger image

Buschmann Rules

Season: 22-22; Trip: 3-4
Wrap, Box, RailRidersBlog

The Bulls pulled back up to .500 with their second win in a row, giving every appearance of coming out of their slump. But also give credit to Matt Buschmann for another superb outing (Game Score: 77).

I wasn’t listening, nor have I read any follow-up, but pulling Jordan Norberto after just two batters does not look good. Here’s hoping that he’s OK.

Meanwhile, a much-reduced player crew took the field and put together a three-run 5th inning that was enough to win the game.

Outside the game —

• By much reduced, I mean really much reduced. In the last few days three infielders have gone on the disabled list: Hak-Ju Lee, Vince Belnome, and Alexi Casilla. Leonardo Reginatto was called back from Montgomery and Tim Beckham is on his way, but the next couple of days are going to be tricky. As far as I can tell, today the Bulls have one player on the bench, whomever isn’t catching. Catcher Mayo Acosta is probably traveling with the team and could probably be activated, though.
• Pitcher  Enny Romero went to St. Petersburg, pitched three innings, and is coming back. Talk about a long walk from and to the bullpen! He did his job, but did walk in a run.
• To take his place, Bulls reliever Preston Guilmet was called up. He has 14 appearances in the majors, 4 in 2013 and 10 last year with Baltimore, so he’s been there before. Good luck!

My Last Game Score Chart

After two days of looking at Game Scores over time, what about individuals? Here’s the average game scores this season for Durham Bulls starters. It’s a pretty close match to our view of them measured by other stats. Beginning to think this may be a pretty useful for evaluating starters. Note that here in AAA not all starting pitchers are destined to remain starting pitchers. And a not-so-good sign for the Bulls is to note that #2 and #3 are on the 40-man and are already going back and forth to the Rays.

Update: Third Baseman Richie Shaffer called up from Montgomery Biscuits [stats]

Tim Beckham Coming to the Bulls

Infielder Tim Beckham is coming to the Durham Bulls after a solid start with the Tampa Bay Rays this year — 33 games, decent stats. Commentary implies that in the short run the Rays need a pitcher more than they need an infielder. They called up Enny Romero, who has been doing an above-average job for Bulls.

Mr. Beckham is showing some real pop this year, as discussed over on Rays Index. Here’s hoping he brings that to the DBAP. The Bulls “power hitters” this year are still looking for a charging station.

After a long rehab, Beckham only got in 15 games with the Bulls last year and our guess was that 2015 might be his year. We've watched him a lot over the years and his arrival certainly helps fill the hole that Hak-Ju Lee's injury has left, plus he is certainly a much better hitter. This could be a real boost to the Bulls upcoming home stand. Here's hoping being optioned doesn't work on his head.

A Win and, How Bad is the DBAP Press Box?

Wrap, Box, Rochester Democrat & Chronicle

Wrap, Box

Season: 21-20; Trip: 1-2
Wrap, Box, Rochester Democrat & Chronicle

At last! A win. A bit ugly what with 3 errors and 12 runners left on base. But a win nonetheless with good jobs turned in by Enny Romero, Jhan Marinez (ERA 0.55 after 8 appearances and 16 innings!), and Ronald Belisario, who came into the game in the 8th with 1 out and runners on 1B and 2B and K’d the Red Wings out. A clean 9th inning got him his 7th save. New guy Preston Guilmet started the 8th and Jared Sandberg had had enough after 3 hits, two runs scored, and only one out.

Alexi Casilla left the game early on for an undisclosed (so far) reason. If anybody hears anything, please add to comments.

Outside the game —

In the “now it can be told” category.

First, let me point out that WDBB is not considered to be part of the "media" and we have never been in the press box or the broadcast booth (old or new) at the DBAP. Never thought to ask, to be honest. They might have let me in, but probably not now. And let me say that from where I sit, I have a hard time telling a curve from a slider from a changeup without checking the speed gun.

Now, on to the story …

I was watching the MiLB TV version of one of the games and listening to the Red Wings' broadcast team since the delay for Patrick Kinas was at least a minute or so and arrived well after the action on the screen. One of the broadcasters, whose name I didn’t catch, went into a fairly lengthy rant about the DBAP broadcast booth.

According to him, it's the worst in all of the International League. No other place in the IL puts the broadcasters where they can’t see the game! He likes the park, hates the booth. As we all know, the broadcasters are high up above first base, so they obviously don't have a very good angle to observe pitches. Nor can they see all of right field. And when the fans stand up, apparently their view is completely blocked. So the broadcasters end up calling the game from the video monitors.

I’ve wondered about that odd configuration myself. As we all can see, with the remodel came a club-like spot up above home plate, which must be really nice for the fans, but ... remember those scenes from “Bull Durham” where the broadcaster is essentially faking his calls?

Just how do folks way up above first base tell exactly where the ball crossed the plate?

Big Bats Emerge

Wrap, Box, Syracuse.com

Five home runs aren’t enough, and an intentional walk plus an unintentional walk lost the game.

Season: 19-12; Trip: 2-1

Wrap, Box, Syracuse.com

Bulls hitters hit three more home runs (Mahtook, Dykstra, and Arencibia), but this time the pitchers matched them with solid performances.

Enny Romero made his 2015 debut with the Bulls after a long getting-ready stretch that goes back to spring training. We were not particular fans of Mr. Romero last year, but he certainly had a solid performance yesterday. How long he sticks with the Bulls is likely to be the subject of intense speculation down St. Petersburg way.

Alan Dykstra has built an odd record since joining the Bulls. The 6’5“ switch-hitter has only had 3 hits in his 10 games for a batting average of .088. However, those three hits are a double and 2 home runs plus he’s managed 10 walks (including at least one intentional walk). That leads him to an extraordinary batting average/OPS gap. His OPS is .590.  He carried an OPS of .930 with Las Vegas of the PCL last year, with 74 RBI. Yesterday he followed up Saturday’s 2 run shot with a solo one in the 5th inning. We’ve been skeptical of Mr. Dykstra. Could we have been wrong?

Overlooked in the offensive stats was how often the defense made a difference yesterday. It was a double play that closed the deal in the Bulls favor on Friday. Yesterday it was three of them that made big differences.

Outside the game —

• The Tampa Bay Times is reporting that Grant Balfour has an end-of-May opt-out to his minor league contract. That certainly means that he won’t be around Durham after this month. 
• The Process Report has a nice profile of Andrew Bellatti written by Adam Sobsey, one of the co-authors of Bull City Summer*.

Matchup

The Bulls rode over to Buffalo yesterday for a rematch with the Bisons tonight. And, yes, it was just a couple of days since the Bulls were playing them at the DBAP. Interesting to see what’s happened to their numbers since we last looked prior to that series. The Bulls have gone from 9th to 6th place in batting average ranking, from 5th to 3rd in OPS rankings, and from 4th to 3rd in ERA. Meanwhile, the Bisons went from 5th to 10th in batting average, 7th to 13th on OPS, and from 1st to 2nd on ERA. But we still need to remember that this is early in the season and rosters are in  turmoil. Very hard to detect meaningful trends. But the Bisons have been on a tough run, losing their last six games.

*Possibly the best book available on minor league baseball. On the shelf at Quail Ridge Books and on half-price sale down in the ballpark store.

Bulls Below the Border

For some guys baseball is a year-round profession. After a few weeks off at the end of the season they are off to the Winter Leagues. I’ve scrolled through the rosters and found some current and former Bulls who are playing ball as we speak, including a couple we haven’t seen in a long, long time. If I've missed someone important to you, let me know.

Robbie Knopf over at Rays Colored Glasses is tracking and writing about the Winter Leagues in more detail. Worth keeping an eye on that blog.

• Pitcher Winston Abreu, a WDBB favorite from several years ago (2009 and 2010), has had a couple of innings with the Toros de Este of the Dominican Winter League. 
• Catcher Mayo Acosta is also playing for the Toros del Este in the Dominican Winter League. Not doing all that well in 10 games so far. 2014 Bulls season profiled here.
• Infielder Wilson Betemit is playing for the Giganantes de Cibao, also in the Dominican Winter League. Doing OK over 16 games. 2014 Bulls profile here. Think, but don't know for sure, that he's now a free agent.
• Pitcher Merrill Kelly has been in a starting role for the Leones del Escogidos in the Dominican Winter League. Not doing all that well, yet. A key player in the 2014 Bulls crew.
• Pitcher Josh Lueke is pitching in relief for the Toros de Este of the Dominican Winter League. 2014 Bulls stats here. Lueke also a free agent now.
• Infielder Ray Olmedo is playing for the Aguilas del Zulia in the Venezuela Winter League.
• Reliever Jim Patterson, who had just 10 innings with the Bulls in 2014, is pitching for the Gigantes de Carolina in Puerto Rico’s Roberto Clemente League.
• Pitcher Enny Romero, not a favorite of WDBB last year, is pitching in relief for the Leones de Escogido of the Dominican Winter League.
• Catcher Roman Ali Solis is with the Tomoteros de Culiacan in Mexico’s Pacific League and playing a lot of baseball. 
• Pitcher Jake Thompson has started three games for the Tiburones de la Guaira in the Venezuelan Winter League. A help last year.
• Outfielder Jon Weber, another WDBB favorite from history (2007-2009), has 6 doubles, a triple, and 6 home runs for the Mayos de Naojoa of the Mexican Pacific League. Nice to see Jon still in baseball. 

The Durham Bulls in 2014 — The Pitchers — Part 1

Twenty-six different players pitched for the Bulls this year, but when it comes to looking back I left off four of them: Erik Bedard pitched in just one game; Mayo Acosta, a catcher, pitched in 2 lost causes; infielder Robby Price in one lost cause; and reliever Bryce Stowell came up from Montgomery for two innings in the last game of the season.

This table is sorted by innings pitched, and that’s the sequence in which we’ll discuss this year’s pitchers. However, in Part 2 we’ll have tables sorted by ERA and WHIP. Players on the Rays 40-man roster are marked with an asterisk (*). Data are from BaseballReference.com, FanGraphs, and WDBB spreadsheets.

Durham Bulls Pitchers in 2014 Sorted by Innings Pitched

Name	Age	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	WHIP
Matt Andriese	24	11	8	3.77	28	25	0	162.1	1.24
Nathan Karns*	26	9	9	5.08	27	27	0	145.1	1.40
Mike Montgomery*	24	10	5	4.29	25	25	0	126.0	1.31
Enny Romero*	23	5	11	4.50	25	25	0	126.0	1.43
Merrill Kelly	25	9	4	2.76	28	15	0	114.0	1.26
Alex Colome*	25	7	6	3.77	15	15	0	86.0	1.33
Doug Mathis	31	2	3	3.63	26	3	0	67.0	1.64
Adam Liberatore	27	6	1	1.66	54	0	4	65.0	0.89
C.J. Riefenhauser*	24	3	3	1.40	39	0	1	57.2	1.14
Steve Geltz*	26	3	3	2.38	29	0	1	41.2	1.06
Josh Lueke	29	0	1	3.38	32	0	12	37.1	1.10
Brandon Gomes*	29	0	2	3.62	27	0	0	37.1	1.29
Jeff Beliveau*	27	0	0	1.50	30	0	11	36.0	0.92
Jake Thompson	24	4	1	3.15	24	1	0	34.1	1.54
Juan Sandoval	33	0	1	3.12	14	1	1	26.0	1.35
Kirby Yates*	27	1	0	0.36	21	0	16	25.0	0.76
Jeremy Hellickson*	27	1	4	7.23	5	5	0	18.2	2.30
Cory Burns*	26	2	2	2.77	7	0	1	13.0	1.54
Braulio Lara	25	0	3	9.00	9	0	0	11.0	1.73
Jimmy Patterson	25	1	1	2.70	5	1	0	10.0	1.30
Brad Boxberger*	26	1	0	1.93	6	0	2	9.1	0.86
Juan Carlos Oviedo*	32	0	0	3.86	7	0	0	7.0	0.86

Matt Adriese (Right Handed Starting Pitcher) (162.1 innings, 28 games) was the best of a not particularly distinguished starting crew this year. Before the season started I was tipped that he might be the best arm of the bunch, and that’s the way it turned out for 2014. He had the most wins and the best ERA of the regular starters of 3.77; however, that ERA ranked 15th among all the pitchers. His WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched) of 1.24 was a respectable 9th. He also led the team in home runs (18) and hit batsmen (8). The only regular starter not on the Rays 40-man, there’s a good chance he’ll be back. He induces a lot of ground balls which makes his games fun to watch. He also got two of the four postseason wins. Stats.

Nathan Karns* (RHSP)(145.1 innings, 27 games) did not have a good year as a Bull. He was one of those players for whom what the fans see is not what the big club sees. We fans saw an awful ERA of 5.08, a WHIP of 1.40, and a string of losses at the end of the season. But we have to note that he had 153 Ks, an amazing number, and he tied for the most Ks in the entire International League. (I have to point out that he also led team in walks at 62.) The Rays called him up in September where he got two starts, one very good and one not-so-good. Likely to be back next year for more development. Stats.

Mike Montgomery* (LHSP) (126 innings, 25 games) was to be this year's ace and he came out of the gate with 8 wins and no losses in his first 15 games, including 8.1 no-hit innings on 26 April. But there was a long stretch between his 8th win on 25 May and his 9th win on 10 July and his next 7 starts were either losses or no-decisions. He did finish out on an up note with an end-of-season win on 28 August, but he was the back of the rotation for the post-season, getting in 6 pretty good innings in the 4th game, 13 inning loss. If it can be figured out what happened to him in the second half of the season then maybe next year will be his breakout. Stats.

Enny Romero* (RHSP) (126 innings, 25 games) is another statistical mess that leaves you puzzled, but for him there’s an answer — not an answer that Bulls fans would appreciate, but an answer nevertheless. He’s a left-handed reliever in training. The 23 year-old only managed 5 wins in 25 starts, carried a poor ERA and a WHIP of 1.43. So why is he around? Because he routinely hits 95+ with his fastball and he’s left-handed. My guess is that the Rays will keep on stretching him out until they think he’s ready to come up as a reliever. And we have to admit that he’s fun to watch. Sure would not want to be his catcher, though. Stats.

Merrill Kelly (RHSP/RP) (114 innings, 28 appearances) was Charlie Montoyo’s go-to guy for long relief and a starter when needed. He had 15 starts, 13 relief appearances, and uncounted calls to warm up. He has the only decent ERA among the starting crew of 2.76, has a good WHIP of 1.26, and is an all-around solid performer. No reason for him not to be back next year and keeping on working towards his shot at the majors. Stats.

Alex Colome* (RHSP) (86 innings, 15 games) joined after the beginning of the season because of a 50-game drug suspension. He won three out of his first four games before putting himself into a statistical hole he had trouble getting out of before the end of the season. That was from a game in late June where he gave up 9 runs before getting the first 4 outs. Here’s the real oddity: after that game he got called up for a spot appearance with the Rays (5.2 innings and he got the win). He was erratic throughout the rest of the season, which leads us to think that he was being coached to work on specific aspects of his game. Decent overall numbers. September call-up. Stats.

Doug Mathis (RHRP) (67 innings, 26 appearances) arrived in mid-April and ended up being one of the players who got shuffled on and off the roster all year, much like Robby Price and Mayo Acosta among the position players. I count ten separate transactions, so about 5 times back and forth. One of those pairs was to/from the disabled list, but that’s hard to judge the veracity of that move. I was surprised to see how many innings he put in. He was needed for those 26 appearances. Yes, he had a poor WHIP of 1.64, but an OK ERA of 3.63. He was called on for three spot starts. He was the kind of guy that the Bulls have to have to survive the season, but I’m guessing he won’t be back. Stats.

Adam Liberatore (LHRP) (65 innings, 54 appearances) had a brilliant season. Unquestionably the star of the relief crew as he picked up 6 wins in relief, had a stunning ERA of 1.66, a vanishingly small WHIP of 0.89, and earned a bunch of kudos at the end of the season. He’s never had a shot at the majors and at 27 he’s running out of time. But he’s also banging on the door. Stats.

Game 3 to the Durham Bulls; One More for the Cup!

Wool E. Bull and friends dance for the crowd last night.
Chris Baird, WRAL

International League Governors’ Cup (Best of Five): 2-1
Wrap, Box, Providence Journal, Herald-Sun, International League

The moment that I circled on my scorecard last night was Cole Figueroa’s at bat in the 3rd inning. Justin Christian had led off with a double and the Bulls were down 0-2 after the Pawsox scored single runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings. The Sox’s Henry Owens wasn’t quite cruising, but he had not seen any real trouble either. Figueroa stretched him out to at least 8 pitches (my count may be off) and on the 9th pitch he hit a very sharp grounder to short. Christian took off for 3rd base. Shortstop Deven Marrero chose to throw to 3rd, threw it high, and the Bulls ended up with runners on 1st and 3rd, nobody out. Jeremy Moore’s single brought Christian home. Tim Beckham’s double brought Figueroa and Moore home. As it turned out, Nick Franklin’s solo home run in the 6th was the key run, but the Bulls had to get those first three runs across first.

What a change to have a starting pitcher set the stage. For the second time in the playoffs Matt Adriese did his job and did it well, going a full six innings. In the 5th he was going so well that he struck out the side. In the 6th he was still looking good, but his pitch count was into the high 90’s and it was time to change.

Both relievers had pitched on Thursday night’s marathon, but they were back and did just fine. I thought that the game was in the bag after C.J. Riefenhauser got out of trouble in the 7th and had a clean 8th. However, as he often does, Josh Lueke provided some last-minute, not particularly welcome, thrills.

The unearned run that scored in the 9th was the first run of any kind against Bulls relievers in this entire series, something like 16+ innings. That’s a testimony to the relief corps even as it says something sad about the starting crew.

I also want to call out Wilson Betemit’s glovework at first base. For some reason everyone, right and left handers alike, were slapping stuff towards right field last night and a couple of them went right down the line. Betemit grabbed at least two that I recall that if not stopped would have created real problems.

Now What?

• Weather is threatening tonight and it looks even worse for tomorrow. 
• Mike Montgomery, who had a pretty decent outing back on August 28th, is scheduled to be the starter. 
• New guy Bryce Stowell is in the bullpen since Nathan Karns starts tonight for the Tampa Bay Rays and the Rays finally took him off the Bulls roster. 
• You have to expect both managers to go all in tonight. All of Durham’s relievers except Riefenhauser and Lueke are available. Even, as Scott Pose suggested last night, Enny Romero could be available for a batter or two for a couple of 98+ fastballs. 
• The Pawtucket starter is making his first appearance at Triple A level. 
• The Bulls could take it all tonight, and wouldn’t that be grand?

Governors' Cup Game 1 to the PawSox

International League Governors’ Cup (Best of Five): 0-1
Wrap, Box, Providence Journal

Life got in the way of baseball today. Probably no news here for Bulls fans. But just for the record.

Enny Romero started because Alex Colome was sick, perhaps a small bout of food poisoning. Romero was not sharp at all, but it could have been much worse in his three innings. By the time he was pulled the Pawsox had left five runners on base. The relief crew did just fine, only giving up one hit and not letting anyone past first base. Doug Mathis, if fact, had a 3 K stretch, and 4 on the night. Very likely that was his best outing of the year. Cory Burns did fine as well.

But the hitters did not. It’s hard to win games when you leave 9 runners on base. The 9th inning was particularly tough with the bases loaded and one out and no one scoring.

Alex Colome is scheduled to start tonight.

Outside the game —

• Persistent chatter/reporting that Nathan Karns has been called up to the Rays and will start a game this Friday. That punches a hole in the Bulls’ rotation if the series goes to five games (Mike Montgomery available to pitch game four). 
• TV coverage OK (channel 1250 on TW cable). Somewhat delayed from the radio broadcast. So you could listen to Patrick Kinas, then pay attention to the play. Actual view of the game very limited by lack of cameras, and I've gotten spoiled by the HD we get locally.
• Great quote from Charlie Montoyo reported by Kinas last night: "You know it's been a good year when you start the year in long johns and finish it in long johns."

Nice Win; Nice Day at the Park

Season: 70-65; Home Stand: 5-4; Home Games Remaining: 3
Wrap, Box

Seems like a very long time since we were at the DBAP. The Bulls are still pitching well, but hitting remains below average, but usually enough to win a game. Also on a slightly upward trend.

Last evening the pitching was not good enough to keep runners off the bases — Gwinnett did get 10 hits and 4 walks — but the pitching was good enough to strand 12 Braves runners.

Enny Romero’s last couple of outings have been impressive. No doubt the young man can throw hard. 96 and 97 mph readings were typical for the night. He was certainly helped by some smart baseball from Nick Franklin and Cole Figueroa keeping runners from scoring.

Hak-Ju Lee’s triple in the 5th was the big hit. And it was a huge thrill for the fans. Sunday’s are “Kids Run the Bases” games and often enough the place is seething with folks not paying particular attention. But for that one moment they were. Everyone came to their feet to watch the hit go into the right field corner and see Lee move around the bases.

Not much hope that Lee will see a big improvement in his performance this year. But maybe this is a good sign going into the playoffs?

Adam Liberatore came on to close out the game, not his typical role, and gave up a home run. That moment just highlights how important he’s been this year. It was the first home run he’s given up this season (and he only gave up 1 last year). In 51 appearances and 62 innings he’s got stunning numbers: ERA - 1.74; WHIP: 0.94(!); FIP: 1.43. Pitches per out a mere 5.03. And he’s clearly (until recently) Charlie’s premier fireman. Over the year he has come in the game with a total of 27 runners on base, far more than any other Bulls reliever. Only 3 have scored. Best of all, from a Bulls fan point of view, he isn’t on the 40-man. However, after these last two years it seems inevitable that he will be, but let’s hope not until after the playoffs. By the way, he got a save.

Outside the game —

Just in case you missed them, several roster moves while I was up in the mountains.

• Brandon Gomes came back from Tampa Bay
• Vince Belnome came back from Tampa Bay
• Wil Myers finished his rehab and returned to Tampa Bay
• RHP Jake Thompson was put on the temporarily inactive list
• RHP Doug Mathis went on the Disable List
• Reports have Tampa Bay catcher Ryan Hanigan and outfielder David DeJesus rehabbing elsewhere in the Rays system. Just how their progress might affect the Bulls is hard to predict. The Rays might, however, try to stretch things out to September so they don’t really have to do anything at all. 
• We're still keeping track of the Rays' trek to .500 here.

A Loss; A Win

Season: 62-55; Home Stand: 1-1; Home Games Remaining: 15
Wrap, Box 1, Box 2, Bisons

We are struggling almost as much as Bulls pitching to find something good to say about the first game last night. How about quirky instead?

In the 2nd inning Ali Solis was up there with one strike on him and the Bisons’ pitcher bounced one in the dirt in front of home plate. The ball hit Solis’ bat, went foul, and Solis had a second strike called on him. He swung at the next pitch, missed, and was out.

Also, good to see Jake Thompson back from the DL. Would have been nice for the Bulls or Rays to let fans know why he was on the DL in the first place, but that’s not what they do. And media apparently never asked either. He pitched just two thirds of an inning and left two runners on base for Doug Mathis, but Mathis kept them from scoring.

But nothing good to say about either Merrill Kelly’s or Brandon Gomes’ evening.

And then it drug on for almost 3 hours. Knowing another game was in the offing, we left and watched the second game on TV.

There we saw a terrific performance by Enny Romero. No secret that Mr. Romero has not been our favorite Bulls pitcher this year, but last night was superb. Six innings of one hit, shutout ball was very impressive.

Also impressive was new guy Nick Franklin. There was his game-winning home run and some very nice play at second base (game 1) and shortstop (game 2). That included his slick beginning of the double play that ended the game. He’s off to a slow start at bat, but the homer helps. And he seems to be a class act. After he was called out for his “star of the game” interview at the end of the game, he went out of his way to acknowledge the fans who had stuck in there (it was about 11:30 by then)

Quirky in Game 2? Well, I don’t recall seeing a pitcher call out an ump as forcefully as Josh Lueke did home ump Seth Buckminster in the last inning. I’d bet he wasn’t ever going to get a called third strike after that, so probably good he got a double play behind him to clear the bases and end the inning and game.

Outside the game —

• Saw Tampa Bay’s Wil Myers in the dugout. The Herald-Sun is reporting that Myers worked out with the team Thursday and will do so again today. Then start playing on a rehab assignment. Possibly for as long as two weeks. 

7th Inning, Again?

Season: 56-50; Home Stand: 1-4; Home Game Remaining: 18
Wrap, Box

What is it about the 7th inning? Déjà vu. And not as if it should have been unexpected. Enny Romero has only gone past 6 innings once this year, back on 1 June. Going into the 7th his pitch count was low at 79 pitches, so that must have been why he went out to face famous home run hitter Mike Hessman. Bad decision. Hessman hit a home run. Two more hits and one more run later the Bulls were three runs behind and had even less of a prayer of winning than before.

Because the Bulls simply have not been hitting lately, as yesterday’s chart showed. Last night Toledo’s pitchers tied them in knots. Only 5 hits, all singles, a walk, and a hit batsman. That’s just seven base runners. Plus the one time they did get a runner to second base (Mike Fontenot in the 4th), he was thrown out trying to steal third base. And the Mud Hens were able to pull off three double plays, which did away with three of those guys who got as far as first.

Outside the game —

• The Norfolk Tides have won six in a row and are coming on strong as the Gwinnett Braves fall off the edge of the cliff (see chart below and the standings) The Bulls’ lead in the South Division of the IL looks much less comfortable.
• Juan Carlos Oviedo is a Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher who started the season with the Durham Bulls. Technically he was on a rehab assignment and never counted against the roster. He made 7 appearances for the Bulls, pitching one inning in each appearance.[ Bulls stats]  A short reliever for the Rays, he made 32 appearances for 31.2 innings down there. Stats. I mention him because he has been designated for assignment by the Rays. That means that he could show up in Durham. The Bulls are short one man and the Rays did not send Jeff Beliveau back. Could be Beliveau is going to stay for a while. 
• Dan Johnson’s still up with the Blue Jays and “blasted” a 70-foot infield hit for a go-ahead RBI. He followed that with a 3-run, 9th inning homer to win a game against the Yankees.